Archaeology of the Unconscious: Italian Perspectives

The Freudian concept of the "unconscious" has been used to interpret a variety of cultural experiences in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries between France and Germany. However, "Archaeology of the Unconscious" challenges this perspective by examining the Italian case from the 1770s to the immediate aftermath of WWI, when Italo Svevo's "La coscienza di Zeno" provides the first example of a "psychoanalytic novel." This book will analyze the formation and circulation of a network of ideas and discourses on interconnected themes, such as dreams, memory, recollection, desire, imagination, fantasy, madness, creativity, inspiration, magnetism, and somnambulism, employing the Italian "difference" as a powerful perspective to address the undeveloped potentialities of the pre-Freudian unconscious.

Format: Hardback
Length: 286 pages
Publication date: 17 July 2019
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

The birth and development of the notion of 'unconscious' have been a subject of intense investigation by historians of ideas, who have heavily relied on the Freudian concept of 'unbewussten.' However, in an effort to challenge this prevailing perspective, 'Archaeology of the Unconscious' adopts an unconventional and thought-provoking viewpoint. This perspective is offered by the Italian case from the 1770s to the immediate aftermath of WWI, when Italo Svevo's La coscienza di Zeno provides Italy with the first example of a 'psychoanalytic novel.'

Italy's vibrant culture of the long nineteenth century, characterized by the sedimentation, circulation, intersection, and synergy of different cultural, philosophical, and literary traditions, emerges as a privileged object of inquiry for an archaeological study of the unconscious. Unlike traditional approaches that seek to trace the alleged 'origin of a pre-made theoretical construct,' this study aims to explore the stratifications by which a specific construct was assembled. Drawing inspiration from Michel Foucault's Archéologie du savoir (1969), this volume will analyze the formation and circulation of a network of ideas and discourses on interconnected themes, including dreams, memory, recollection, desire, imagination, fantasy, madness, creativity, inspiration, magnetism, and somnambulism.

By questioning pre-given narratives of the 'history of the unconscious,' this book seeks to uncover the undeveloped potentialities of the pre-Freudian unconscious, beyond solely psychoanalytical viewpoints. Through the lens of the Italian 'difference,' it aims to explore the unique cultural and historical factors that shaped the development of the unconscious and its relationship to other intellectual and artistic movements of the time.

In conclusion, 'Archaeology of the Unconscious' offers a fresh and innovative approach to the study of the unconscious, challenging the traditional perspectives and providing a valuable contribution to the field of intellectual history. By examining the Italian case and employing the Italian 'difference,' this book seeks to shed light on the complex and multifaceted nature of the unconscious and its role in shaping the cultural and intellectual landscape of the long nineteenth century.

Weight: 552g
Dimension: 161 x 236 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367263737